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Fertilizing: Everyone should
start fertilizing regularly now since your
begonias are bursting with new growth and
need the food. Quarter strength fertilizer
once a week is the best method. Any
balanced fertilizer is fine. Now is a good
time to apply Nutricote if you haven't
already.

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Cleanup: As usual, keep the
dead stuff picked up. Clean out old dead
leaves and debris from inside your pots
while your plants are pruned back. It’s
much easier to clean out the debris now than
it will be later when the plants have filled
out. Get your pots all cleaned up and ready
for repotting if you haven't already. Now
that your plants have new growth, make sure
to remove any old damaged leaves.

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Pests: Watch for aphids.
I have seen plenty of them already. Any
spray will kill them, including soap spray.
You can also wash them off with a strong
spray of water. Since you have fewer leaves
and are probably trimming back your plants,
now is a good time to do a methodical
inspection of all your plants for giant
white flies and mealy bugs. It will be much
easier to keep these pests under control if
you start now before you have a lot of lush
new growth.

Ø Mildew and
Disease: Now that the weather has
warmed up and it hasn't been rainy you
should have less disease problems. If you
have any plants that you commonly get mildew
on, now is a good time to spray with a
fungicide. Most fungicides are preventative
sprays and you must start spraying before
you get mildew if you want to control it.
As with pesticides, use proper precautions
and follow directions. Fungicides are toxic
and should be used with care. Most carry
warnings that they can cause permanent eye
damage if they get in your eyes, so use
protection to be safe. Sometimes moving
begonias to a different location it likes
better will solve a mildew problem. Mildew
is usually a sign the plant doesn't like the
conditions.

Ø Pruning &
Pinching: You can safely prune any
of your begonias now without worrying about
die back. Make sure to start pinching the
tips of your begonias, especially basket
types and any you choose not to prune back.
When pinching the tips, allow the shoots to
grow out until they have three side buds
before pinching the tips again. Some of the
larger leafed upright canes, if they have
been pruned, don't require pinching. Not
every begonia needs pruning, especially if
it is a younger plant. Some just need
repotting. Don't prune and repot the
begonia at the same time. Do one or the
other. Plants (except rhizomatous types)
should be repotted deeper in the new pot, in
fact, pot them as deeply as possible to
encourage new roots and new basal growth.

Ø
Watering: Your plants will be
need more water now that the weather is
warming up. I generally water my begonias
about twice a week during warm weather.
This is only an example, not a guide, but
should give you some idea how often you
really need to water. Begonias in sunnier
locations may need watering three times a
week.

Ø
Repotting: You can safely repot
your begonias now. Any begonias that you
pruned shouldn't be repotted until new
growth has come out. A rule of thumb would
be to wait until you have new growth about
6" tall. A good practice is to try to pot
your begonias in such a way that they all
dry out and need watering at the same time.
Plants that you notice are always drying out
before the others can be moved up to larger
pots and any that seem to never be dry when
the others are, can be moved to smaller
pots. The older the plant, the less often
it needs repotting. Young plants should be
moved up to larger pots as often as they are
ready. (When the roots have filled the
pot).

Young plants that
are actively growing may need repotting
several times during the year. Only move
them up one pot size at a time. Older
plants (a few years old) that are now in 10"
and 12" pots may only need to be repotted
every two or three years, and usually back
into the same pot with fresh soil. It is a
good idea to at least top off the pot with
fresh soil on these larger plants to
replace the mix that has washed out over the
year, Larger pots should be filled to about
1" of the rim.

In general ……
It is warm enough now that you can start
cuttings in baby food jars of water. Make
sure to start cuttings from all your plants,
for selfish reasons if for no other. This
practice will provide you with replacement
plants should something happen to the
original. Sharing with the clubs and
friends has its rewards too. Should you
lose a plant, those same friends can provide
you with a cutting. Generosity with your
plants always gets you more in return than
you give. Since begonias are not commonly a
commercial plant, sharing with friends and
club sales is the only way they are
circulated. Keeping a variety to yourself
will get you in the end. Eventually you
will lose a plant and have no way to get it
back again if you keep it to yourself. The
more rare the plant, the more reason to
share it so it isn't lost.